Manual dilatation of the anus vs. lateral subcutaneous sphincterotomy in the treatment of chronic fissure-in-ano. Results of a prospective, randomized, clinical trial.

The results of a prospective randomized trial in 111 patients were recorded to compare manual dilatation of the anus with lateral subcutaneous sphincterotomy performed under general anesthesia. There was no significant difference in the clinical results nor in the incidence of complications. Persistent or recurrent fissure occurred in three of 59 patients after manual dilatation of the anus and two of 39 patients after lateral subcutaneous sphincterotomy, an incidence of 5.1 percent in each group. Only one patient developed serious impairment of continence, and this occurred following lateral subcutaneous sphincterotomy (5.1 percent).